A Matter of Power
by Betty BOKOR
Summary: SamDaniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.
1. Chapter 1

**A MATTER OF POWER – I. The Power of Politics** by Betty Bokor  
Sam/Daniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.   
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.  
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

**The Power of Politics**

**Chapter 1**

"Okay, Daniel. Can you tell me what could be so important that you had to drag me out here? What's with all the secret?"

"This is something very important, Jack. I don't want anyone to hear us talking about it."

"Fine; you got me here. Nobody can hear anything we say. We've talked about the Goa'uld and the Ori in less secure locations before."

"This has nothing to do with the gate and if someone heard us, it could ruin her career."

"Whose career?"

"Sam's."

"Sam? What's going on with Carter?"

"Nothing is really going on with Sam, but I found out something that worried me very much."

"What? For cryin' out loud, Daniel! Just tell me what the heck is going on!"

"I recently found out that when the Stargate Program becomes public in two months, General Landry will join you here in Washington."

"Yes, that's true. He'll come work at the Pentagon. He's going to prepare to replace me when I retire. How the hell did you find out that? Nobody's supposed to know yet."

"It doesn't matter how I found out, Jack. You just confirmed it and that's what matters."

"So Hank is leaving the SGC; what does that have to do with Carter?"

"She should succeed him as the head of the SGC," Daniel said very calmly.

Jack kept very quiet for a moment, staring Daniel in the eyes, and then replied, "I don't think that's going to happen, Daniel."

"I know that, too, but I think that's wrong. She deserves it. She was in this Program even before us and she's been in SG-1 longer than anyone but me."

Jack kept silent again for a while. Then he sighed and made a gesture of impatience. "I don't know where you get all your information, Daniel, but it's almost certain that she won't get it and there's nothing you can do about it."

"_You_ can do something about it."

"What do you think I can do? That's a political position. There are many people _above me_ who have a say about it, but I don't."

"I know why they won't give it to her."

"For cryin' out loud, Daniel," Jack said getting exasperated again. "Where, tell me, where the heck do you get this from?"

"I told you; it doesn't matter. I know that the main problem is that Sam is single, that she doesn't have a family. You said it. The head of the SGC is a political position and they want someone with an image suitable for public consumption now that they're coming out with it."

"Okay. So you know all this. Then, you also know that there's nothing I can do, so I don't know where you're going with this conversation."

"Marry her."

"Are you out of your mind!"

"I know how you feel about her. Marry her, give her a family, make her happy and at the same time give her the chance to get what she deserves."

"I can't marry Carter. Even if I wanted-"

"Oh, come on, Jack, don't tell me that you haven't been flirting with her since the very beginning," Daniel said getting impatient.

"Listen to me, Daniel. I won't deny that I like Carter, she's a hell of a woman, but I haven't made any plans to marry her. I don't know if marriage would work for us. Besides, I can't do anything about it until I retire and I'm not retiring yet. I have much to do when the gate becomes public. We'll see after that."

"Then, I'll marry her."

"What!"

"I don't mean marry-marry her, Jack. I'll just offer her the chance to look like the right candidate. After she gets the SGC and you retire, we get a quiet divorce and you're free to go."

"She'll never accept that, Daniel."

"Why not? We're best friends and she can trust me. It will just be a temporary arrangement, until you're ready. I'm sure she will feel comfortable with me knowing she will not have to carry on anything but a simple pretense of a marriage. The guys _above you_ are not asking for a big family with kids. Landry is divorced and so are you, so I don't think they will find any other excuses to deny Sam her rightful position."

"You don't know that."

"It's worth a try."

"I still think you've lost your mind."

"Well, I'll talk to Sam and we'll see. You'll just have to go with the charade, so that it looks like the real thing."

"You won't ask me to be your best man, will you?"

"Why not? I'd probably ask you if I were marrying anyone else, not that I'm planning of ever marrying again, but-"

"Okay, okay, Daniel, I get it. It's only going to be a make-believe marriage and I'm going to be the make-believe best man. Are you happy now?"

"Actually, yes. I'll call you and give you the news, whatever it is. Just go with it, all right?"

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Any comments? Please, take a minute and give your opinion. It is very important for me to know what the readers think in order to decide how to continue a story or write the next one, or, if there is no interest, stop posting it here.


	2. Chapter 2

**A MATTER OF POWER – I. The Power of Politics** by Betty Bokor  
Sam/Daniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.   
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.  
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

**The Power of Politics**

**Chapter 2**

"Married, Daniel?"

"I told you, Sam. It won't be the real thing. If you not being _a family woman_ is their excuse, they won't have any. "

"And you're willing to do this for my career?"

"Not exactly for your career, Sam, for you, because you deserve to go into the history books as the Commander of the SGC, because you're the right person for the job and because you're my friend."

"Thank you, Daniel," Sam said, feeling very moved by his words. "I'll think about it and I'll give you my answer tomorrow," she promised.

She drove home early and spent the evening thinking about Daniel's proposal. She had had no idea of Landry's plans to leave the SGC for the Pentagon and it had also shocked her to know that her marital status was being used as an excuse to drop her off the list of candidates to succeed him. She was always in awe of how Daniel found out about things that nobody else seemed to know. More than anything, it stunned her that Daniel was willing to fake a marriage to help her out. Well, the marriage would be real, just their married life would be a fake.

She knew she would have a hard time deciding what to do. She really wanted to head the SGC and prove that a woman could get to the top of her career, especially within the military. She understood that the Command was a political position and that the rules of promotion that usually applied within the Air Force would not be relevant there.

On the other hand, she did not know if it was right to marry Daniel for such a reason. She had hidden her unrequited love for him for so many years, that she was resigned to never having a chance to be with him. She had started hiding her feelings right after meeting him and inexorably falling for him. He was everything she had dreamed of since her teenage years: adventurous, intelligent, caring, sensitive, and so handsome… In any case, Daniel had never shown any signs of feeling anything other than friendship for her, so she had kept her feelings to herself. For a while, she had even felt some unhealthy jealousy for Sha're for having been capable of making him fall so deeply for her, but then she had felt sorry that she could not come back to make him happy. Since then, guilt for her initial feelings had driven her to overcompensate and to punish herself by not even trying to reach Daniel's heart.

Then she had noticed Jack's interest in her and she had started enjoying it. Over the years she had gotten used to his attention and it was as vital to her as her daily dose of Daniel. Daniel's ascended time had been the worst of her life, but after his comeback she had still felt unable –or unworthy– to reach out to him.

Now, he was asking her to marry him. The problem was that he was doing it for her career and he was not really asking her to be his wife; just his _pretend _wife. She had three options. First, she could decline his proposal and try to get the promotion some other way. She was pretty certain that there was no other way. She already _was_ the best candidate and if being single was the only excuse they had found not to give it to her, there was nothing else she could do.

The second option seemed more promising. She could marry him and get herself the job and then, when everything was solved, divorce him as he proposed.

Or, she could marry him and try to get him to love her as she loved him. That plan had a major obstacle. Daniel had said that their marriage could go on _until_ Jack retired. That was the point when he was going to ask for a divorce. First, she had thought that Daniel believed that _she _had something going on with Jack, but, if he did, he would be asking Jack to be the one to marry her. That meant that it was not _her_ relationship with Jack that would precipitate the divorce. It had to be _Daniel's _relationship with Jack.

She was stunned. Over the years she had heard multiple rumors about Jack and Daniel, but she had always dismissed them. To her knowledge, they were both straight men, previously married to beautiful women. Besides, she had also heard rumors about many other people, including herself. She knew the rumors about her were false, so she always thought the others were too.

Now she had no other choice but to acknowledge what Daniel had told her. He could fake being married to her until Jack was retired, out of the military, away from the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy. Then, he would be free to pursue a less secretive relationship with Daniel without the fear of being court-martialed. Since she had never had a relationship with Jack, there was no other way to interpret his words, unless it was simply a matter of Daniel _wanting_ a relationship with Jack and not daring to ask until the chances were better.

It was too much for her. She lost her appetite and decided to go to bed early. She could not sleep though. She kept thinking of little details over the years that could have indicated a different kind of rapport between her two teammates. Suddenly, many scenes of their lives that could have been simple acts of friendship, acquired new meaning as she saw them as the result of a shared feeling. All that bickering between the two of them that had led Ferretti to tell them that they looked like an old married couple. All the hours Jack spent in the Infirmary, holding Daniel's hand, waiting for him to wake up after another hit. All the times Daniel had accepted refuge in Jack's house after a harrowing experience. Every time that Jack had been the one comforting him. It was all so clear now, that she berated herself for having been so blind.

Probably all the flirting Jack had done with her had been part of their cover-up operation.

So, what was she going to do? Was it fair for her to try to fight for Daniel's affection or would it mean a betrayal to her friendship with Jack? It was overwhelming.

Daniel had had more women than Sha're. They had talked about some girlfriends from his college years and then there had been Sarah. What about Ke'ra? He had been interested in her, too.

And Jack? What about his love for his wife, even after they had divorced? She remembered quite well when he had kept calling for Sara after he was injured in Antarctica. Did Kynthia count? She had also found out about the affair with Laira and then she had caught him with Kerry Johnson. Was it all a charade?

After a night of insomnia she reached a decision. She was going to accept Daniel's marriage proposal, on his terms. She was not going to push to get the marriage to become a real one, but she was not going to push in the other direction either. She was going to let their lives take their own course. Whatever happened, she would go with it. That did not mean that she was not going to try to make Daniel's marital life a lesson in happiness. She had already started planning how to cater to his bliss. Perhaps he would one day realize that it was good being married to her; that it was worth working on it. If, by the time Jack retired, Daniel had not fallen for her, she would accept the divorce without a complaint. She just wanted a fair fight.

She was sure that a sexless marriage was not going to be a model of perfection, but she knew couples, especially among soldiers wounded in war, who had forgone sex almost completely and still had a life of happiness.

Sam and Daniel got married on Independence Day. Daniel found out that couples themselves could solemnize their own marriage in Colorado, so they chose to do it in order to avoid bringing anyone else into their charade. Because of that, they had no problem getting it done on a holiday. It also helped getting all their friends at the SGC to be there. Even Cassie spent a couple of days in Colorado Springs to witness the wedding. Sam entirely refused allowing Daniel to let anyone know the conditions of their marriage. She wanted to keep it completely secret. Daniel supposed Jack had already talked to her about her options and that she just did not want to discuss that with him. In any case, Daniel could not bring himself to lie to Teal'c so he revealed their secret to him and asked him to keep it safe. Teal'c agreed and he also kept to himself his opinion about it. He was certain that the marriage would not remain a pretense for too long.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Any comments? Please, take a minute and give your opinion. It is very important for me to know what the readers think in order to decide how to continue a story or write the next one, or, if there is no interest, stop posting it here.


	3. Chapter 3

**A MATTER OF POWER – I. The Power of Politics** by Betty Bokor  
Sam/Daniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.   
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.  
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

**The Power of Politics**

**Chapter 3**

Sam closed the door after Colonel Paul Davis and sat back at her desk. She was upset, but she did not want Davis to notice. Since the Stargate Program had become public, her life had been transformed into a never-ending succession of social events. She had wanted to command the SGC in peacetime to be certain that all the scientific and cultural possibilities of traveling through the wormholes were properly used. Now she spent more time smiling for the journalists than actually commanding anything. Daniel was lucky, because SG-1 had not stopped going through the gate at all. He was having the time of his life.

Davis wanted Sam to make her marriage a more public event. As the man in charge of the Public Relations of the mountain, he had charted every movement she had made in front of the press. The constant attention of the media had been almost crushing, but Davis had handled it with a firm hand. The problem was that almost a year after her marriage –and eight months since being appointed Commander of the SGC– she was still not pregnant, something Davis had imagined would happen soon after her wedding. He had thought that Sam and Daniel would be pressed to get a child before Sam became too old to have a first pregnancy without complications, but nothing had happened. The press had not found the couple very alluring. She was a soldier and he was a scientist. They were not movie stars and ordinary people found it difficult to relate to all their heroism and intelligence. They were too far out.

Davis wanted to show that they were as normal as every other couple in the world, but Sam and Daniel were making it difficult. They never had misunderstandings or lovers' quarrels. They always solved all their difficulties in a rational manner. Daniel searched for different options and Sam walked through them until one of them suited them both.

They did not try to hide in the corners of the SGC to have a little romantic interlude either. No; they were always proper and correct. If he had not seen how much they cared for each other, Davis would have thought that the whole marriage was a charade. So, he decided to plan a little, to make something happen that would attract the attention of the public to them. One April afternoon he sat in his office and started carefully planning the events that would put the Jacksons in every magazine cover and newspaper headline of the country. The Program needed a boost in publicity, especially now that the wars were over and their funding was not a Defense matter anymore.

Sam, on the other hand, was happy with the way her marriage was going. She was not willing to make it a publicity affair. She was still hoping it would become a real marriage before lending it to that. Time was running out, though. Jack was set to retire in December, which meant she had less than a year to make it work or surrender Daniel to Jack.

She had been handling it like a military operation. She prepared her strategy very carefully. Her plan was characterized by its economy and its simplicity.

She started with the offense. First, she had to flank the enemy army. Jack probably had no clue about her feelings for Daniel, so he would be unprepared for the attack. Surprise would be her best ally. Some days she felt guilty about doing that to the General, but when she looked at Daniel and felt confident that she could make him happy, she forgot all her scruples.

She became a perfect wife, even better than she thought she would ever be. She did not cook much, but she made sure that they always had appetizing and nutritious meals at the table, even if she had to get a caterer to provide them. Daniel made his share, too; he cooked as often as his duties on SG-1 allowed him and he helped around the house.

Sam also made certain that the house was always clean and tidy and that everything was there when needed. She did not want Daniel to think that she was not capable of handling her new job and her housewife responsibilities at the same time. After a while, she discovered that she enjoyed doing little tasks to make their house more comfortable and cozy, and she started doing things just for the pleasure they brought to her, more than as part of her plan. Daniel commented on more than one occasion how good it was to come home to Sam instead of to an empty apartment. Sam agreed with him, but she felt like the concealment of her real feelings about the matter was almost an ambush to Daniel's good intentions. Then she reminded herself that _all is fair in love and war_.

On another front, she did not want to defend herself from Jack's influence in Daniel's life, so she made it hard for her former CO to have access to her husband in any unsupervised manner. It was sort of a siege, a blockade. She was always there when Jack came to visit Colorado and she made sure Daniel was not on Earth if she had a previous engagement that would keep her from chaperoning them. Being Daniel's boss helped immensely. She was aware that Daniel had frequent conversations on the phone with Jack, but that did not bother her. Besides, she was sure that Daniel would never be unfaithful to her as long as they were married. She knew she could not direct a frontal assault to Daniel's position, so she needed him to surrender to her. By surrounding her target and cutting his supply of Jack, she was simply fortifying her own position.

She enlisted the cooperation of some of her friends –unaware of her real intentions– to achieve her goals. Cameron Mitchell was dating Carolyn Lam those days and Sam got her old friend to share some of their outings with them. They did many things together; such as going to the movies, having nice dinners at local restaurants, or making little weekend trips. All the time they spent with the other couple, Daniel had to play his part as her husband and she took advantage of every second. She considered their joint dates as _raids_, sudden little attacks on the enemy lines not designed to hold ground, but to weaken her opponent's position.

Walter Harriman was always there to aide her with any of her needs and friends as Hammond or Cassie, who had no idea of the reality of their marriage, always lent a hand by treating them as a real couple.

To address the concentration of her troops –she only had one soldier and he was unaware of the battle going on– she had sold her house and urged Daniel to sell his in order to buy a house together. She wanted a battlefield free of memories from the past. She wanted to be the one making new memories. She completely rejected the idea of having separate bedrooms. She justified it by explaining that if anything ever happened, it would not do any good for the publicity of the SGC to find them sleeping in different rooms. In any case, that had not worked very well because Daniel simply had gone to bed every night, laid on his side and fallen asleep in a matter of minutes. No matter what she did, even if she _inadvertently_ cuddled with him during the night, he was unfazed. He would wake up in the morning, disentangle himself with a smile, and go about his day as if nothing had happened.

For Christmas they accepted Jack's invitation to go to Washington. It was a risky maneuver, sort of a charge, an advance into enemy territory, but she was willing to engage in close combat if it was required. It was a battle that would affect the rest of her life. Nonetheless, nothing happened. She observed that Jack and Daniel had a couple of moments when they found an excuse to have a talk on their own, but it was not too unnerving for her. It was worse when she noticed Jack get slightly upset in his living room when Sam sat by Daniel's side on the couch, snuggled against him, and rested her head on his shoulder. She could have missed it, but, because she was alert, she caught the look that Jack gave Daniel and how immediately Daniel found an excuse to stand up and walk to the kitchen. Jack's sign of jealousy gave her proof that she had penetrated the enemy lines and was well on her way to victory.

If she thought about it, Daniel never rejected her gestures of endearment. They had always intruded in each other's personal spaces and it was not much different now. She was only using the hugging, the touching, and the slightly public kissing as part of her warfare.

Another one of her offensive strategies was the counter attack. Well, it was mostly defensive. Every time Daniel brought Jack into a conversation, she swiftly changed the subject. She tried to camouflage her intentions by using different diversion techniques each time. She did not want Daniel to become estranged from Jack. She just wanted him to see that he could be happier and have far less complications in his life if he chose her. She unconsciously resented the fact that Jack had been flirting with her all those years, knowing he was not going to take it any further. What if she had put her hopes in him? What would have happened when she finally found out that Jack was not truly interested in her?

Some days she thought that even if Jack _was_ interested in her, if he had really meant it all those years, he had not come to her rescue as Daniel had. He probably had known about the obstacle that Sam's marital status had become in the continuation of her career and he had done nothing about it, not even alert her. _He_ could have been the one marrying her. It was about time that he retired and one year more or less would have not made a real difference, unless his fame or the public appreciation he had gotten from his post were more important than her.

There was always something more important than her for Jack, but not for Daniel.

Nevertheless, her tactics seemed to have achieved many small victories for her. Over the months, Daniel had slowly let her cross the barriers that he had built around his private emotions after so much pain. They had been able to discuss events such as his parents' death or Sha're's final message to him. Sam could relate in good measure, because she had lost her mother in her teenage years and her father so recently, and because she had lost so many men she had cared about, starting with Jonas Hansen and following with Narim, Martouf, Orlin, even Joe Faxon. She felt like she had gained access to the main fortress without the need of any artillery bombardment. She actually felt it was an honor that Daniel confided in her and she confided many of her own feelings to him, except the ones that concerned him.

The more time she spent with Daniel, the more she loved him. It was easy to see through his soul having him so close to her. His compassion, his generosity, his capacity to be open-minded about everything, moved her to try to improve herself. She was well aware of the words she had uttered to him as he lay dying after Kelowna. He had changed her. She knew what mattered and what really mattered to her was to make him happy and to make up for some many years of suffering.

Daniel, on the other hand, had built new barriers around him that were invisible to Sam. Sharing every day with her had made it hard not to fall for her, but whenever he felt near the edge of the abyss, he had held onto the only fragile branch keeping him from plunging: he could not betray his friend. He would not betray Jack.

Over the months, Daniel had settled into the comfortable rhythm of married life. Coming home with Sam, always having a warm meal on the table, allowing himself to spend leisure time doing fun things with her, had changed his life. It was the first time that he had felt so at ease. He had memories of life with his parents, always on the go, from one dig to another, from one exhibition to the next. Life with Sha're had not been easy either. Yes, she had loved him as no one else had loved him before. Yes, she had been there exclusively for him. Yes, there had been no obstacles for their love on Abydos, but life had been as hard as any life in a primitive society has always been. Not even having potable water to drink some days could certainly put a crimp in your happiness. And there had also been his professional misgivings. He had the chance every day to prove that his theories, which had made his colleagues laugh him out of Academia, were true, but he could not even discuss it with anyone who had knowledge enough to understand the magnitude of his discoveries.

Now, he had it all. Since the Program had become public, his theories had been recognized as valid and his reputation had become unblemished. All those who had laughed at his expense, had had to bow to his foresight. He did not care about so much recognition. He was just happy that he did not have to hide his ideas for fear of ridicule anymore. Besides, he was still able to travel through the gate and now he had better chances at choosing his destination, considering that the aim of the trips was mostly scientific. Cameron's function in most of the missions was to escort the scientists around and keep them from trouble. Cam had admitted to him that he was happy with that, now that he was thinking of starting a family with Carolyn.

What made him happy the most was Sam. He knew that he would never have a chance to explore anything beyond friendship, but he was enjoying every minute with her. If he did not know about the feelings that Sam and Jack shared, he would have allowed himself to believe that Sam loved him. Well, she loved him, just in a different way.

They were both so compatible, so perfect for each other in so many ways, that it made it easy to share their lives. He felt comfortable talking to her about his feelings. He had fun going out with her, sharing his knowledge of history and languages as she shared her science. And she was so beautiful, especially when she was smiling. No wonder Jack was in love with her. Sam had a beauty that was more than physical; it encompassed all of her. He felt blessed that he could be part of her life even for a short period of time.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Any comments? Please, take a minute and give your opinion. It is very important for me to know what the readers think in order to decide how to continue a story or write the next one, or, if there is no interest, stop posting it here.


	4. Chapter 4

**A MATTER OF POWER – II. The Power of Feelings** by Betty Bokor  
Sam/Daniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.   
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.  
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

**The Power of Feelings**

**Chapter 1**

Paul Davis was a man of action. He had served in the military since he was very young and he had learned much from his commanders and fellow soldiers. He was also a good politician. His assignment as Pentagon Liaison had allowed him to improve his public relations skills and now he needed to use them. He was certain that Daniel and Sam's marital life was far _spicier_ than they let out in public. According to his plan, he just needed one picture, one innocent, not too telling picture that would _hint_ to that. If he could get it, he was going to let it circulate in the press circles so that normal people could see them as what they were, a pair of newly-weds in love.

He just needed to find the perfect moment, so he decided to carry a small digital camera in his pocket at all times. He was not after something scandalous, just a little bit riskier than their usual. Near the end of June he came up with a good opportunity for his plan to start working.

Sam and Daniel were going to host a reception to celebrate the Fourth of July and their wedding anniversary. The party was going to be held at a famous hotel in Colorado Springs and there would be many important guests, plus the members of the SGC. Jack O'Neill had been on the list as one of the main guests, but a small home accident was preventing him from flying to Colorado, leaving the couple to host the party along with Cameron and Teal'c. That meant that they would have to stay at the hotel that night, in order to be there to receive the guests and to close the party as well. Davis was certain that if he followed them around the day of the party, he could get something to serve his purposes. Parties always get people to relax and let some of the daily correctness disappear.

Sam was also looking forward to the party. Jack was not going to be there and that was going to work to her advantage. Over the last few months she had seen slight changes in Daniel's behavior. There was nothing evident, but she had known him for too long to be oblivious to the small alterations to his daily routine. She was certain that Daniel was attracted to her and also that he was enjoying the marriage as much as she was. She felt there was hope for her and she was willing to stake it all out on a dangerous bet. The night of the party, amid the celebrations of their wedding anniversary, she was going to make Daniel face her feelings for him. She did not know how or exactly when, but she was convinced that the right opportunity would present itself. She just needed to be ready.

She had taken care of all the logistics for her D-Day. She had decided to wear a dress for the party, instead of her uniform. It was not a military function, but a social one. She spent a few days searching for the right dress until she finally found a very elegant black dress that made her skin look radiant and perfect. It was not a revealing dress, just classic and stylish. She also chose simple jewelry and lifted her hair up. The hair had grown some after she had stopped cutting it monthly, right after being promoted to Brigadier General. She had not tried a different hairdo in so many years that when she looked at herself in the mirror she almost did not recognize her image, but she enjoyed the effect. She supposed that being happy, as she had been in the last months, had definitely had an effect on her appearance. As a last touch she selected a very mild perfume that she remembered her mother using often.

The night of the party Sam avoided drinking much alcohol; she wanted to be clear minded. She checked on Daniel and she only saw him drink some champagne during the final toast. He usually was not a heavy drinker.

Sam openly flirted with him all night long. She kept looking at him with eyes that said much more than her words. She hugged him and kissed him more often than they usually did to give the image of the happy couple. She even made a couple of jokes, almost in a whisper, only for him to hear, about their chemistry and how much they could enjoy if they really were together. She finally allowed her hands to wonder in places she had never dared touch. Nothing too strong; just plenty of insinuation.

For the casual observer, everything could have been part of the normal behavior of a couple of two young people in love. Paul Davis thought so and captured many images that could be used in his campaign.

For Daniel, it was extremely confusing. He already had enough trouble battling his own demons to have to deal with Sam's strange behavior on top of it that night. He kept wondering what was going on. He tried different answers and none left him satisfied. Sam was acting as if possessed. He knew she had drunk very lightly during the night, so he could not attribute it to an impaired state of mind. Was she really insinuating herself to him? Perhaps she only wanted to have one night of fun… No, that did not sound like Sam. Maybe she simply wanted everybody at the party to be convinced that their marriage was real. Nobody really doubted it, so what was the point?

Was she choosing him over Jack? He did not know what was going on between Jack and Sam as they waited for Jack to retire, but he was sure that it would always be just platonic until she was divorced from him. The little Christmas _incident_ was well behind. Actually, it had not even been enough to call it an incident, just a flare of jealousy on Jack's part. In any case, he had not seen any other signs of problem between his friends and he was almost certain that Sam would never choose him if Jack was available. He had noticed how Sam had not failed to see Jack every time he had been in Colorado and how sometimes she had ensured that he was off-world when the General was in town.

They were dancing now and she had just lowered her hand on his back enough to make him shiver. It was getting dangerous. He broke the dance and excused himself to go talk with Colonel Davis. Sam noticed his reaction and let him go with a mischievous smile.

Davis was paying attention to them; he was utterly satisfied. When Daniel approached him and asked if there could be a formal closure of the party that would allow whoever wanted to leave to do so without breaking any protocol, Davis agreed. Sam joined them and they closed the official segment of the celebration.

Daniel just wanted to get out of there and go back to the hotel room. Sam followed him chatting and smiling as they walked toward the elevators. As soon as they were in one of them, she turned around and kissed him. Daniel lost control of himself and responded to her hungrily. He softly pushed her backwards toward the elevator wall and he lifted her slightly against it as he kissed her neck. Sam arched backwards and closed her eyes as she allowed him more space to kiss her. It felt wonderful to be so tightly flushed against him.

The elevator's doors closed and Daniel found enough clarity of mind to press the right button. They did not change pace as they walked together down the hallway toward their room. Daniel opened the door and Sam closed it as soon as they were both inside, still entangled in frantic kissing and caressing. It had been long since she had felt this kind of high. It had been even longer since he had allowed himself to love someone without thinking of the consequences, but there was definitely no thinking for Daniel. He was just being happy, for once in his life.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Any comments? Please, take a minute and give your opinion. It is very important for me to know what the readers think in order to decide how to continue a story or write the next one, or, if there is no interest, stop posting it here.


	5. Chapter 5

**A MATTER OF POWER – III. The Power of Denial** by Betty Bokor  
Sam/Daniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.   
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.  
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

**The Power of Denial**

**Chapter 1**

Daniel woke up when the telephone started ringing loudly by his side. He was not sure where he was; he did not have his glasses on yet. He vaguely remembered that that day was a holiday and that he had planned sleeping very late. He caught his glasses on the nightstand and looked at the clock as he picked up the phone. 11:38.

His name yelled on the other end of the line startled him and he quickly sat up with his legs hanging by the side of the bed.

"Daniel! I'm talking to you! What the heck does this mean? Can you tell me? What the hell is this, Daniel?"

Jack's voice sounded furious. He did not know what to answer. He felt more awake now, but not everything was clear yet. He suddenly felt a hand on his back and Sam whispered, "Daniel?"

Every second of the night before came rushing to his mind. That was what Jack was talking about. He had found out about Sam and him. But, how? Nobody knew. They had not even been out of their room. Did Jack have someone spying on them? He felt upset about it, but the guilt of having betrayed his friend was stronger.

"Jack," he started softly.

"Have you seen the newspapers, Daniel? Have you seen yourself there? This is how you repay me for my trust?"

The _newspapers_? Daniel was more confused than before. He got out of bed and walked toward the door of the room. He opened it slightly while hiding behind it and stretched out his hand. There, on the floor in front of the door, was a newspaper. He swiftly picked it up and got it inside the room. One look at the cover was enough to understand Jack's fury. He gathered his courage and said to Jack, "I have it in my hand, Jack. I need to talk to Davis. I'll call you later."

Jack had not stopped yelling questions at him, but Daniel hung up anyway. He had to figure out the state of things before talking to him again. He called the hotel operator and requested her to hold any other calls to their room. Then he caught a bathrobe from the bathroom and walked back to the bed where Sam was laying with questions in her eyes.

He turned the newspaper so that she could get a full view of the cover. There, in Technicolor, was a picture of the two of them in the hotel elevator. Sam was against the wall with her head thrown backwards and her eyes closed as Daniel kissed her near the throat and kept her trapped between his body and the wall. Because of the sheer size and clarity of the picture, it could even be seen that Sam's feet were not touching the floor. She had both her hands entangled in Daniel's hair and his hands disappeared behind her back. For Daniel, it was arousing just to look at it. He did not want to imagine what Jack had thought when he saw it.

"Oh, my God!" was all Sam said.

The picture was not really that bad. They were both fully dressed and just kissing. All the comments below the picture were positive ones. After all, they were a married couple with enormous power in the world. It was good to see that they had a healthy sexual life and that they found time for themselves among their many responsibilities. That was the commentator's opinion. Sam found it funny and Daniel was mortified.

"Daniel, don't take it so seriously. We're a married couple. We're not hurting anyone," she said after she managed to erase the smile from her lips.

"Jack," Daniel replied. "We're hurting Jack. He has, well, he probably _had_ hopes that he could start a new life after retirement. This must have virtually annihilated his expectations. We have to talk to him and tell him that this is _not_ what he thinks."

"What do you mean this is _not _what he thinks? He must be thinking exactly what it is. We're married and we have the right to have a little fun. What happened between you and me last night wasn't wrong, Daniel; don't tell me that." She was hurt and it showed in her tone.

"We both know how Jack feels. This was a betrayal to those feelings. I had no right."

"I can't believe you're saying that, Daniel!" Sam objected with pain. "I was there and I know what _your_ feelings were. Aren't they as important as Jack's?"

"It was a mistake. I promised him, I promised him that I would not-"

"That you wouldn't what, Daniel?" Sam interrupted. "This is between you and me. You married me, not him. Jack has nothing to do with it. If you want to lie to yourself and say that you don't feel anything for me, so be it. I'm not going to sit here and listen to you." She wrapped herself in a bed sheet and walked to the bathroom. Once inside she slammed the door shut.

Daniel needed to think and he also needed to find out how that picture had ended up in the newspaper, more than one newspaper, if Jack had already seen it in Washington. He got dressed and walked out in search of Paul Davis. He was in charge of Public Relations for SGC. Everything that was published about it crossed his desk. What he found was a very satisfied Colonel. Davis smiled the whole time as he explained how the picture had raised Sam and Daniel's popularity in one morning. It had meant hard work to get it everywhere before all the newspaper deadlines, but it had been worth it. He had already received calls from popular TV shows asking for the couple to be guests and talk about their happy marriage.

Daniel was feeling miserable, but he had no excuse to show it to Davis. After all, he was_ supposed_ to have a happy marriage with Sam. He went back to his room and noticed that as soon as he had opened the door, Sam had gone back into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. He patiently packed all his belongings and left the room. He wanted Sam to cool off. They would have time to talk later.

Instead of going back to their house, he went directly to the SGC. He was scheduled for an early mission and he could distract himself getting ready for it. The first thing he did after going into his office was to call Jack. He avoided telling him exactly what had happened; he thought it would be easier if Sam discussed it personally with him. He did not want to put the burden of telling the truth on her, but he was not sure of how much she was ready to share. He explained Colonel Davis' plan to improve the public image of the SGC, but he carefully circumvented the fact that they had not been playing a charade for Davis' benefit. He apologized repeatedly for having upset him and he promised to call later on in the week.

Sam did not call him during the day and she did not answer the phone when he tried calling her at night. She was not there at the control room when he left on his mission the next morning. She had always been there, but Harriman gave them the signal to go, explaining that she was tied up in an official matter in her office.

Sam was extremely upset. She did not want to talk to Daniel or Jack. She could not understand them. It was hard to stop thinking of Daniel and her memories of the Fourth of July. Every time she closed her eyes, images, sounds, and sensations rushed to her mind. There were three mental pictures that haunted her more than all others. First there were Daniel's shoulder and upper arm muscles, clearly drawn under his skin, as he strained them to hold himself above her. Then, there were the sculpted plains of his abdomen as she slid her hand downward on them. Finally it was the perfection of his jaw as she kissed it before giving in to his lips one more time.

Her recollection of the sensations he had provoked in her was another matter altogether. She found herself sighing or breathing deeply in the middle of serious meetings, just because she remembered one touch, one stroke from his hand. She even caught herself closing her eyes briefly to enhance the memory. She knew she wanted to repeat the experience… What the heck! She wanted it to become part of her normal life, a daily occurrence, one more way of deepening her connection to Daniel. He would have no way to deny what he had felt and expressed that night. She had proof that he was attracted to her and that it was a deep, bonding attraction, not just a fling. If she added that to all the other signs she saw everyday as they lived together, she could almost be certain that he loved her. The problem was that it was just _almost_, not _completely_ certain.

She suddenly came up with a new idea. It had to be Jack's feelings that were holding up Daniel so powerfully. If Daniel knew Jack loved him, he would never allow himself to hurt him, even if his feelings for her were stronger. She needed to better assess Jack's position. She desperately needed more intel on her enemy.

Finally, she decided to get Sara in the middle of the battlefield. She had met Sara O'Neill roughly six months before, when, as part of the process of making the Stargate Program public, they had reached out to schools and universities around the country to select teachers to be taught and trained about the program in order to pass their knowledge to their students. When Sam saw Sara's name, she immediately made sure that she was part of the list of approved candidates. She was convinced that Mrs. O'Neill had suffered much due to the secret nature of her former husband's job, and she wanted her to understand firsthand why all the secrecy had been necessary. She had first tried to meet her personally out of curiosity; she remembered seeing her at the hospital where the _alien_ O'Neill had been taken many years ago, but she had never talked with her. Very quickly she discovered that Sara was a very interesting woman and they started a timid friendship. When she invited her for dinner to her house, Sara met Daniel and their friendship deepened. They both understood what Jack had seen in the sharp Sara and they both felt sad about the loneliness that seemed to dominate her life. Sam had noticed that Sara always managed to get Jack in their conversations and that she tried very hard to find out how he was doing in Washington.

Now, Sam decided, it was time that Sara found out for herself. She had the theory that Jack's attraction for her over the years had been just a reflection of his attraction for his wife. In a way, she almost looked like Sara probably had looked twenty or more years ago. If that was true, there was a chance that he still had feeling for his ex-wife and that those feelings were stronger and more deep-rooted than his feelings for Daniel.

She felt bad about _using_ Sara for her fight, because her ultimate goal was to weaken Jack's position. If he still cared about his wife and he had a chance to talk to her now that he was allowed to be frank about so many of his past secrets, perhaps those feelings would be re-awakened. In any case, it would at least confuse the issue for him and Sara would get a chance to explore her own feelings. There was a risk that all of them would get hurt in the process, but all wars have their casualties and if her plan did not work as she thought, she would be the first one to fall.

She planned the incursion into Jack's camp very carefully. She found a reasonable excuse. Sara had excelled in her role as Program liaison and Sam arranged for her and three more of her colleagues, who had also shown their talent for the job, to visit the Pentagon headquarters of the SGC. She planned it as a two-fold operation; first she needed to ascertain Jack feelings. Was he in love with Daniel and waiting to retire to start a new life with him? Did he still love his wife? Why had he flirted with Sam all those years? Which feeling was stronger and was going to prevail when the right time came?

She knew that Sara had become close enough to Daniel and herself to trust them with her findings. She secretly wanted Jack to choose Sara, because that would make everyone happy, except for Daniel, but she was willing to do anything to get him there, too.

The second part of her operation was to force Daniel to confront his feelings. If Jack chose Sara, Daniel would not be betraying him by allowing himself to fall in love with Sam. If Jack chose Daniel, Daniel would have to choose who would really make him happy, Jack or Sam. That would be the end of the war, a simple peace treaty. Daniel's nation had sovereignty and he had the right to choose.

On Monday, Sara and the other teachers left for Washington and Sam sat in her office to wait. To wait for news from Sara and to wait for Daniel to come back.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Many, many thanks to Monica and Chas for their help with this story.

Any comments? Please, take a minute and give your opinion. It is very important for me to know what the readers think in order to decide how to continue a story or write the next one, or, if there is no interest, stop posting it here.


	6. Chapter 6

**A MATTER OF POWER – III. The Power of Denial** by Betty Bokor  
Sam/Daniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.   
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.  
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

**The Power of Denial**

**Chapter 2**

SG-1's mission went ahead mostly without incidents. They reached an advantageous agreement with the population of the planet they were visiting and then spent some days documenting their culture. The day before their return to Earth, Daniel had the chance to spend some time alone with Teal'c, while Cameron performed the official duties as CO of SG-1. Daniel told his friend what had happened with Sam and how devastated he felt because of his mistake. Teal'c advised him to talk to Sam as soon as he got back. It seemed to him that she was not upset about having spent the night with Daniel, but because Daniel had deemed it a mistake. Teal'c's opinion was that Sam and Jack had to deal with the situation on their own terms. Daniel had already apologized and he felt genuinely sorry about it. He had to let Sam sort out what her heart wanted.

Daniel decided Teal'c was right and prepared himself for a frank talk with Sam. He would not deny what he had been feeling, but he would let her be the one to express her feelings first. In any case, he was certain that he was _not_ in love with her and that Sam was _not_ in love with him either. They had both let the charade go to their heads and they had slipped up, but everything would be back to normal as soon as they talked and put everything in its place again.

On the morning before their return, a severe seism shook the planet. To Cam, it was as bad as some earthquakes he had experienced while stationed on the West Coast. As soon as the movement subsided, he went in search of his men. Teal'c was close to a collapsed building. He was holding his left arm with his right hand. He seemed to have broken it as he kept a piece of concrete from hitting a group of children playing on the front porch. He was not complaining about the pain, but Cam could clearly see that there was a broken bone in his arm. Daniel was sitting on the floor nearby, holding one of the children. He was talking to the child he had visibly been protecting from the falling debris with his own body. As he would not answer his call, Cameron approached him. He immediately worried as he saw the pallor of his face. Daniel seemed to be having increasing difficulty breathing, but he was still trying to comfort the scared child. Cam took the boy from his arms and gave him to the mother who had approached them seconds earlier. She kept thanking Teal'c and Daniel for preventing a horrible tragedy. Cam asked Daniel again if was feeling all right, but his friend only looked at him with confused eyes. Then Cam saw the small pool of blood growing on the floor behind Daniel. He kneeled by his side and noticed a small injury to his back and a sharp piece of metal sticking out in its center. Despite its size, the injury seemed to be producing steady blood loss.

He worked on stopping the hemorrhage and, with the help of some of the town's people who had come up to them to check up on the children, he transported him to the gate. Teal'c followed them, feeling that he was failing his friend because he was unable to help.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Any comments? Please, take a minute and give your opinion. It is very important for me to know what the readers think in order to decide how to continue a story or write the next one, or, if there is no interest, stop posting it here.


	7. Chapter 7

**A MATTER OF POWER – IV. The Power of Pain** by Betty Bokor  
Sam/Daniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.   
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.  
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

**The Power of Pain**

**Chapter 1**

After they gated to the SGC, Daniel and Teal'c were taken to the Infirmary. When Teal'c was finally released with a cast on his arm, Sam and Cam were still waiting outside for news about Daniel's condition. Dr. Lam finally came out and explained that Daniel had suffered severe blunt trauma to his back, but that the damage, especially to his lung, had been repaired.

His friends felt very relieved. Sam stayed with him for a while, thinking about the fight they had had the week before. She could not wait to talk to him and tell him how sorry she was. She had missed him terribly, more than she usually did when he was gone with SG-1. She just wanted to apologize and to allow him to take his time to think about what he really wanted. If Jack was what he wanted, she had no right to push him away from him. She would also talk to the General and try to mend his relationship with Daniel. She had not heard back from Sara and, at the time, all her plans felt meaningless.

Jack's call the morning after the party had seemed to her like a formal declaration of war. She had felt there would come a final confrontation where she would win or lose. She was not willing to retreat, so she had used all her firepower against her former CO. Now, as she saw the aging General come through the Infirmary doors with worry in his eyes, she did not see him as the enemy anymore. There was no conflict any longer; she had been disarmed. They both wanted the same, for Daniel to be all right again. She was about to talk to him, when an alarm went off on Daniel's monitors and they were rudely pushed out of the way by medical personnel.

They walked back to the observation room on top, the same one from where she had witnessed her father slither away following Selmak. Jack was back at her side, just as he had been that terrible day.

"Carter," he softly said as he stood by her side.

"Sir," she replied. Then she shook her head and spoke, more to herself than to him. "He was doing fine. I don't know what's going on."

They saw the doctors below them carry Daniel's bed toward the exit of the room, probably to perform new tests, and they felt slightly relieved. If there were new tests to be done, then at least he was alive.

"Carter," Jack said again as he sat slightly behind her, "we need to talk."

Sam sat by his side and nodded. "Yes, we do. I want to apologize for what happened at the hotel last week. It was entirely my fault; I pushed him. He didn't want to be unfaithful to you, but I pushed him."

Jack found her words confusing, but thought that he was misinterpreting them. "Carter- Sam," he said. I'm not sure I get what you're saying, but I think I understood that you wanted something to happen between Daniel and you. Was that it?"

"Yes, sir. I'm sorry, sir. I know you've been waiting to retire to start a new life, but I just… I've just been in love with him for too long to let him go that easily," she finished with a sight. "I felt I was at war with you, sir, for him… but when he was injured I realized that I only want him to be happy and if he wants to be with you, I'm putting my weapons down. You win."

By then Jack was utterly confused. He had not thought of Sam as his contender; he had seen Daniel and himself as the warring parties. Sam was the prize, the territory to be conquered. He stopped his reasoning right there. Since when had Sam become a trophy? And wasn't she already in love with him? He was about to reply to Sam when Dr. Lam entered the room and sat by their side.

"We just completed an MRI on Dr. Jackson. There's blood from a small hemorrhage accumulating around his spinal cord and it has already caused serious side effects. It's called spinal hematoma. It brought on severe pain and, in a matter of minutes, complete paralysis. He's not breathing on his own and he's lapsed into a coma. He could recover spontaneously, but we don't want the blood to flow upward to the brain, because it could be fatal, so we want to relieve the pressure by removing the blood before the damage is permanent. It's dangerous and I need your consent."

Sam looked at Jack and softly nodded. As soon as the doctor left the room, she covered her face with her hands and sobbed softly. Jack was dumbfounded; he had seen her keep her composure even when her father had died. He moved closer to her and wrapped his arm around her back.

"Sam, he's going to be all right. He has more lives than his damn cat. He always pulls through."

Sam recovered a bit and cleaned the tears on her face. "You're right, I know."

"Sam," Jack added as he moved slightly away from her. "I don't know what Daniel has told you, but I think somewhere in there the wires got crossed, because all those things that you said right before Dr. Lam came in, made no sense to me at all, and I know that most of what you say goes right over my head, but you were not technobabbling, so I should have gotten it right."

"What? What did I say?"

"You said that Daniel wanted to _be with me_," he whispered.

"Oh!" she said with consternation. "I thought you knew. I thought that you both… that that was why you were so upset when you saw the picture."

"Carter, now I'm more lost than before. Has Daniel ever told you anything like that?"

"I don't know if I should tell you because if he hasn't told you himself, maybe I shouldn't-"

"Just freaking tell me, Carter. What did he say?"

"When he proposed to me he said that we could only be married until you retired, sir," Sam replied in a very low tone.

"And you thought that he meant that _he _was waiting for me?"

"Well, yes, sir. What else could it have been?"

Jack sighed. This was going to be harder than he thought. "Carter, Daniel thought _you_ were waiting for me to retire."

"Me?" Suddenly everything started making sense in her mind. Yes, she had had some kind of frail relationship with the General. They had both been flirting with each other for the longest time. Daniel could have easily thought that she had hopes of transforming it into a real relationship when Jack retired. He did not know that by the time she had gone to work in Nevada, she had completely lost any hope of making that work. Jack was in Washington and he had not offered any indication of still being interested in her. "Oh!" she said again. "Oh, I understand… I don't know why I…"

"It's okay, Carter, just forget it."

"I'm so sorry, sir. You left and you never said anything-" she looked down and continued, "I didn't know."

"It's okay, I already told you. It's my fault because I never made it clear and, besides, you just said that you've been in love with the Spacemonkey for a very long time."

"That's different, sir. All these years I've been trying to let it go. I don't know why it hasn't worked."

"Because you really love him, Sam," he said, softening his tone. "I have to tell you that you're an extraordinary woman, Sam, and I would have been glad if we had gotten somewhere, but, here, today, looking down from this window, I'm glad that you love him. He really needs someone to love him. Much more than I do. I'm used to being alone. I'm the only one to blame for my loneliness. God knows Sara has tried to reach out, but I've had these tall walls around me since Charlie died." He held her hands between his and continued. "Daniel is different. He's alone because his life is just a damn nightmare; he never catches a break. I won't allow anything to get in the way of him getting some happiness, especially not myself. If he loves you, you should keep fighting for him. If that picture of the two of you is not a wake up call for him, I'll stay here until he gets better and Teal'c and I will knock some sense into him," he finished with a small smile.

Sam had to smile, too. She reached out and hugged him. "Thank you, sir."

"Besides," Jack added softly, "I've been thinking that I should give Sara another chance. We were good together, we were really good."

Sam felt comforted that her plan had not backfired. She was sure that Sara and Jack would finally work out their problems. Now, she only had to help Daniel.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Any comments? Please, take a minute and give your opinion. It is very important for me to know what the readers think in order to decide how to continue a story or write the next one, or, if there is no interest, stop posting it here.


	8. Chapter 8

**A MATTER OF POWER – IV. The Power of Pain** by Betty Bokor  
Sam/Daniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.   
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.  
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

**The Power of Pain**

**Chapter 2**

Daniel knew he was awake. He just did not want to open his eyes. Everything was silent, except for the humming of the machines around him. He had no doubt that he was in the Infirmary and that the object threatening to send him into a nausea spree was a tube to allow him to breath. It probably was not good that he was intubated; something pretty bad had to have happened. He made an effort and tried to remember.

He recalled the quake. It had been bad. Teal'c had been right by him, helping him protect the children close to them. Then there was nothing until he had awakened in a torturous pain while Carolyn Lam asked him question after question about what he was feeling. "Pain!" he wanted to shout at her when suddenly every sensation stopped and his body fell into a scary numbness. He knew he was panicking. He did not mind dying; he just did not like that kind of nothingness. What would he do if his body did not function anymore? What would become of his mind trapped in that body? The opposite option, a functioning body with an injured mind, was even scarier.

He slightly stretched the fingers of his right hand to check if he could move them or if he was still paralyzed. His heart jumped as he felt not only the movement but also the warmth of another hand holding his. Oh, God! Thanks!

Sam's voice calling for Jack and Carolyn startled him. They both had probably been close by, because their voices reached him in a few seconds.

"Daniel, Daniel!" Jack called him.

"He moved his fingers," Sam explained.

Daniel knew he had to answer, but he was feeling tired and he was not sure that he could deal with Jack and Sam at that time.

"DanielJackson, if you can hear us, open your eyes," Teal'c's voice commanded.

Good; that was good. Teal'c sounded all right. He had come back with him from the quaking planet.

"Do not try to talk," Dr. Lam added.

Sam softly squeezed his hand and Daniel gave in. He slowly opened his eyes and blinked a few times. Dr. Lam directed him to aid as she took out the breathing tube. His friends were smiling around him. Cam was there, too. Carolyn sent them all out as she checked him and proved that the paralysis had disappeared.

After she finished her examination, everybody came back into the room. They talked to him about general matters and joked about silly things. He saw clearly their intention of not talking about any serious concern that could have been worrying them and he understood it. He smiled as much as he could and he made sure that they all saw that he was feeling better. Over the next few days their attitude did not change. He was surprised that Jack could extend his stay so long, but he was happy. His relationship with him felt mended. He believed Sam had talked to Jack and they had reached an agreement, He could not figure out what yet, but they both behaved as they had in the old times.

His injuries were healing fast. If it had not been for the spinal complication, it would have gone even faster. The wound had not been that grave to start with and they had brought him to safety soon.

That Sunday, Jack announced he was due back in Washington D.C. the next morning. He asked Daniel to accompany him for a walk along the hallways of the SGC. Dr. Lam agreed to let him go as long as he promised to stop and rest often.

Daniel could see a hidden intention in Jack's invitation, but he was not sure of what was coming. He asked Jack to walk to his office and his friend agreed. As soon as they sat down among the books and artifacts, Jack started the conversation.

"So, what are you planning to do next week while you're on stand down to recover?"

Daniel thought that was an odd question; the _normal_ Jack would have probably started by recommending a fishing trip. "I have a couple of tablets I want to finish studying and I'll probably-"

"Daniel, stop it!" Jack interrupted him. "Stand down means you're not working. I thought, as a genius, you had already figured that out."

"I've already lost many days of work because of this injury and-"

"What about taking the wife for a short vacation?"

That caught Daniel by surprise. "Excuse me?"

"I thought that Sam and you have been under a lot of pressure lately and maybe it'll help if you take some time off. I'm sure Ferretti and Mitchell can handle things on their own for a few days."

"You're not mad about what happened on the Fourth anymore?"

"Carter and I talked; don't worry. Just take it easy for a while. Choose a nice place and go rest for a few days. I'll take Davis off your back while you're gone; I'm sure he can make up something about the two of you being away together. It will make him happy."

Daniel was not sure what Jack really had in mind. Sometimes it was hard to read him, especially in the last years. He finally concluded that Sam and Jack had finally had a good talk and cleared the air between them. Now his friend was giving him a vote of confidence. Even after what had happened, Jack trusted him with Sam. He was not going to disappoint him again.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Any comments? Please, take a minute and give your opinion. It is very important for me to know what the readers think in order to decide how to continue a story or write the next one, or, if there is no interest, stop posting it here.


	9. Chapter 9

**A MATTER OF POWER – V. The Power of the Heart** by Betty Bokor  
Sam/Daniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.   
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.  
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

**The Power of the Heart**

**Chapter 1**

"Remind me again why we chose this place," Sam said as she walked shivering toward the hotel main entrance.

"You stated the conditions; I just selected a place that accommodated them," Daniel said with a smile as he followed her. "You said you wanted a beach, but you were tired of the hot summer at home. You wanted a place where we wouldn't get recognized too often, or at least people wouldn't bother us as much. You also said that I was completely forbidden to choose a place where I could start any new excavation or dig of any kind, so this is it. We're in the Southern Hemisphere's winter, by the beach of Mar del Plata."

Sam kept quiet. She had wanted a special place where she could spend some time with Daniel and figure out if there really was something to keep fighting for. Until then, she had only seen the streets of a big city, beautiful, but a city nonetheless, and her dream of a cozy romantic place was crashing. When they reached their room, she changed her mind. The view from their window was astounding. A peaceful beach extended along the edge of the city, with silent sands alternating with thin piers stretching like fingers into the sea and, further away, blackened rocks incessantly assaulted by the unrepentant sea. She could imagine herself walking along the beach holding Daniel's hand or sitting at the edge of the road above the sea cliffs listening to the water hitting the rocks. "Why is it so deserted?" she suddenly asked.

"This is a city that lives on tourism, but it's winter now and the winter vacation took place during July for most people in this country. Now, they only get people coming for the weekend. Today is Monday, so…"

"I'd love to walk along the beach under the moonlight," Sam said.

"Oh, that would be great. You can see all the lights of the city as you walk," Daniel agreed. "Then we can stop downtown and have a good dinner in a local restaurant. They're open until very late. We can even ask the concierge about a place with a show, like tango dancing."

Sam accepted the suggestion and started preparing herself by getting out some warmer clothes. This was good; the colder it got, the more propitious for snuggling, she thought.

The first days went by without incident. Sam and Daniel returned to their married routine. A few journalists recognized them, but, after a while, and after some nice interviews, they left them alone. The city offered many attractions and the couple took advantage of them. It felt good to be in a new place without any fear of being captured, shot, or brainwashed by the natives.

What surprised Sam most was the nightlife. Even in the middle of winter, the locals, and the tourists as well, were willing to stay up until late hours. It did not matter if it involved going to the cinema, the theater or spending the whole night dancing, they did it any day of the week. If it was still early after the movie or the play –one in the morning– everybody was ready to have a nice late dinner or at least sit in a small café and talk for hours among friends. Daniel soon found other people to share their outings with and, though it took her longer to get used to the new schedule, Sam enjoyed them as much as he did. It took her even a little longer to get used to four meals a day and she soon concluded she had eaten more beef in those few days than in a year at home.

Daniel seemed happy, content, but Sam could not go beyond that façade. She knew that he was definitely enjoying the trip –meeting people, going places, that was Daniel's way– but he had gone back to treating her just as before the party and that was becoming intolerable for her.

Knowing that they still had one more week of vacation together, she was weary of bringing up something that could ruin the mood for the rest of the trip, but by Friday night she could not stand it anymore. When they got back to the hotel, after a night of dancing that had her completely agitated, she decided to talk to him. She sat on the edge of the bed to take her shoes off while Daniel was in the bathroom brushing his teeth.

"I can't do this anymore, Daniel," she said with a deep sigh.

Daniel rinsed his mouth and came back to the room. "I'm sorry. I know we've doing too much; we almost don't get to sleep, but that's the way-"

"No, Daniel, it's not the vacation. I'm fine with that. It's this, coming back here, stopping the game."

"What do you mean?"

"During the day everything is great, we're a couple and we do everything together. We hold hands, we kiss, we're happy, Daniel," she said looking at him, "but, then, we come back here and it's like we're two strangers. I haven't forgotten how it feels to make love with you. I still remember very well the touch of your skin on mine, the-"

"Sam!" Daniel interrupted. "We can't go back there and you know it. I don't understand why you're doing this." He sat by her side and looked in her eyes. "What's going on, Sam?"

"Promise me that you'll answer some questions truthfully and I'll tell you," she replied.

"Okay, I'll answer, but I don't understand how that's going to help."

"Are you in love with Jack?" She asked without warning.

Daniel did his best impersonation of _'you lost me somewhere on the way here'_ and then finally closed his mouth and answered, "No, Sam, I'm not in love with Jack."

"Fine. So, do you think he's in love with you?"

Daniel seemed even more confused this time. "No, I don't think so."

"So, why are we divorcing when he retires?" Sam finally asked.

Daniel looked at her and she felt that he had decided she had lost her mind. "What do you mean _why_? We're doing it for both of you. _You_'re in love with _him_ and_ he_'s in love with _you_," he said as if it was so obvious that nobody could refute it.

"I don't think so." Daniel looked at her again as if she had gone suddenly mad, but he was not capable of replying to her. "Did he ever tell you that he was in love with me, Daniel?"

He tried to recall everything he had talked about with Jack and those words did not come up at all. "Not exactly."

"What did he say then?"

Daniel thought a little bit longer and then said, "That you could explore the possibilities after he retired."

"And I'm supposed to be sitting here waiting for him to see what happens?"

"Well, if you love him-"

"That's the point, Daniel," she said with a little exasperation in her voice. "It's true that he's very attractive and that over the years I'd fantasized about having something with him, but it didn't happen. Neither of us cared enough to leave this job and try it. We always found a new excuse to hide behind. That's not true love, Daniel."

Daniel looked at her and took a deep breath "Okay…"

"Now, tell me, what do you feel for me?"

"I don't think that matters."

"Yes, it does! Listen to me, Daniel. Jack and I will never get together. We talked about all this while you were injured. We both agreed. He's even gong to try and give Sara another chance. She's moving to Washington this week."

Daniel was very surprised. "You talked about your feelings with Jack?'

"Yes. I told him exactly what I feel. Now, you promised to tell me the truth. What do you feel for me?"

Daniel sighed. This was hard for him. "All right, Sam. I'll tell you. All these years, you've been my best friend, in a different way than Jack has been. Teal'c and Jack have been those people that I can count on, that I can lean on whenever I need to, but you've been more than that. I know that there are things in your field that go right over my head-"

"The same with yours," Sam smiled.

"But, in spite of it, you and I _connect_. We can see where the other one is going; we can even finish each other's thoughts. That, I had never found before, Sam."

"I feel exactly that way about you, too," Sam replied, squeezing his hand.

"But," he added cautiously, "I had never allowed myself to look at you as a woman until all this started. I thought it would mess up the team dynamics if I didn't keep myself in check. Your flirting with Jack was already bothering me; I didn't want to make it worse."

"I'm sorry. I didn't know you noticed."

"Everybody noticed, Sam. People would ask questions that I didn't know how to answer. I just told them it wasn't their business, but, at same level, it bothered me."

"I'm really sorry."

"It doesn't matter anymore, Sam. Just let it go."

She shook her head slowly, reflecting on how far things had gone and how it all seemed out of hand. She decided to try again. "So, what changed after we got married? You said you hadn't seen me as a woman until all this started. What changed?"

"So many things…" Daniel paused as if trying to evaluate what was more important to say. "It's hard to spend every day with you, Sam, and not see what an extraordinary woman you are." Sam tried to thank him, but he stopped her. "Let me say this, okay? It's not that I didn't know before; it's that living together gives you insights that you don't get as a friend. I've enjoyed this time we've spent together more than any other time in my life. I know there are many external reasons that contributed. We have peace, I can still go through the Gate, my career is not in ruins anymore… Those are important factors, but sharing our lives daily has been a different experience. The truth is, I don't know how I'll manage to let you go."

"You're not listening, Daniel. I'm trying to tell you that you don't have to let me go. I don't want to go anywhere. I never have. I wanted this to be real from the very beginning. I meant every one of my vows."

"I did, too, Sam."

"But you put a deadline on them. I meant them forever."

Daniel was surprised again. The whole conversation was hard to take in. He was so certain of what he had believed for years to be true that it was taking a huge effort to open up his mind and his heart to what Sam was trying to tell him. "Why?" he finally asked.

"Why? Because I wanted –_I want_– to be your wife. I want this to work and some days I feel you do, too, but you're so afraid of something that you won't even admit it to yourself. What is it? What is it, Daniel, that's keeping you from taking this chance?"

He thought for a moment and realized that it always went back to the same point. "Jack. I just don't want to hurt Jack, Sam."

She sighed deeply. This was taking a lot of effort. "Well, now you know that you won't hurt him. What do you say we really give this a try?" He sighed and she could see that he still had doubts, so she changed her plan. "All right. Let's leave it at that for now. You can think about it and then tell me what you want to do." She stood up and Daniel did, too. She leaned toward him and whispered, "Just a hug, okay?"

Daniel hugged her strongly and she leaned her head on his shoulder. They stayed like that for a few moments until she slowly raised her hand to the opposite side of Daniel's face and softly caressed his temple. Daniel closed his eyes to enjoy her touch and felt his resolve fade away, so he swiftly turned his face away from her hand to avoid the temptation, only to find himself face to face with Sam who took the instant of confusion to initiate a kiss that he did not want to stop. When she finally let him go, she smiled at him and whispered, "Bait and switch, with a flank attack. You should know better than to try and avoid a General in the United States Air Force."

Daniel smiled and, as he embraced her again, he whispered back, "White flag. I surrender, unconditionally".

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Any comments? Please, take a minute and give your opinion. It is very important for me to know what the readers think in order to decide how to continue a story or write the next one, or, if there is no interest, stop posting it here.


	10. Chapter 10

**A MATTER OF POWER – V. The Power of the Heart** by Betty Bokor  
Sam/Daniel. Sam deserves a promotion and Daniel is willing to help her. Sam has her own plans.   
Spoilers: All seasons, including 9 and 10.  
Disclaimer: The Stargate original characters belong to MGM/Showtime, Double Secret Productions, and Gekko Film Corp. This was written strictly for the purpose of entertainment. No attempt at copyright infringement has been made.

**The Power of the Heart**

**Chapter 2**

Paul Davis looked at the pictures he had displayed on his desk. This was going to be his last assignment at the SGC before he received his promotion and moved back to the Pentagon. He grabbed one of the pictures and smiled. It had been six years since he had first gotten an interview for Daniel and Sam on that TV show. They had just come back from a short vacation in South America and Sam was pregnant, though not many people knew it yet.

He picked another picture, the most recent one, and smiled at the happiness radiating from Sam's face. She was pregnant again, for the fourth time in these six years, and this time she was expecting twins.

"_We need to make up for the lost time,"_ Sam had said once with a broad smile. _"And I'm not that young anymore."_

He held another picture in his hand. Between the ones they had adopted and their own, they already had twelve children at their home, plus the ones on the way. He was not sure if it was Sam's military training or Daniel's powers of persuasion that kept such a household in order, but it always seemed to run smoothly and the children never lacked a heartfelt smile on their faces.

There was only one thing that bothered Daniel when talking about his family. Every time someone asked something like _"How many are yours?"_ he would immediately reply with a curt _"They're all ours."_

Adoption had become one of Daniel's crusades and Sam had embraced it with the same passion. She had retired two years ago because she wanted to dedicate more time to that part of her life. _"I was in the military since I was very young, but now it's time for me to enjoy this family we have. We both want a very big family, though some days it feels even more challenging than dealing with the gate problems,"_ she had said while explaining her reasons to him. Daniel always saw the bright side of it. _"We'll do fine,"_ he usually stated with conviction and a big smile. _"We'll just need a pair of crutches for when the last one finally graduates."_

Davis turned around the latest picture of the whole family and started scribbling the names of the children in order. He always forgot one or another when he was in a hurry.

Janet; the triplets, Jacob, Mel, and Nicholas; the twins, Claire and Ellinor; then Charles; little George, Robert, Lionel, Catherine, and Sha're. Davis drew some arrows and wrote in honor of whom the children had been named. It always made for a nice comment. Dr. Fraiser, their fathers and Daniel's grandfather, their mothers, Major Kawalski, General Hammond, who had passed away two years ago, Dr. Rothman, Colonel Pendergast, Dr. Langford, and Daniel's first wife. He added at the bottom the names he knew the twins would have Ernest, for Dr. Littlefield, and Leda, for the lady who had nursed Daniel back to health in Rand.

Davis remembered that Jack O'Neill had vehemently refused to allow them to name a child after him, stating that he was still very much alive and planned to stay that way for many years to come. For years Davis had witnessed Sam and Daniel trying different names and he had finally understood the reason behind that when Daniel had told him, _"There are so many friends we don't want to forget and this is our simple way of honoring their memories." _ Davis had peeked at their list and had seen names that were still waiting to be chosen, like Martouf or Narim. If Daniel and Sam continued on the path they had started, there would probably be other children to bear those names. It was simply fitting that these two people who had opened the door to a whole new world for their planet, would open the doors of their home to those who needed their love the most.

Davis collected the photos and put them in an envelope. He picked up his briefcase and checked himself in the bathroom mirror before leaving the office to meet with the journalists who were bidding him farewell as the head of the SGC Public Relations. If there was something he could say about all the people he had worked with during the existence of the program, it was a sincere _"Mission Accomplished."_

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Any comments? Please, take a minute and give your opinion. It is very important for me to know what the readers think in order to decide how to continue a story or write the next one, or, if there is no interest, stop posting it here.


End file.
